Cut me some slack

Last Thursday we piled in the car and headed to Colorado for a little family trip. Farmboy loves to drive, and I love to not drive so it works out just right. The drive wasn't too bad. It was actually quite beautiful at times. And HY was in heaven--what will all the tunnels and trains. Plus he got to indulge in his latest craze. (Thomas the Train)


But what's in Colorado? Only some of our dearest friends EVER!

Talk about fun. Our kids had so much fun playing and dressing up (we don't have dress up clothes at our house, so this was a real treat.)
Mini-E was a princess for the first time.


(Big Boy J was a good sport and let me put a tu tu on & this red hat).

We visited the Cozy Cow & learned all about where milk comes from. And we splurged on some egg nog (mamma's fav) and chocolate milk (daddy's fav). But we didn't stay long because it was windy and freezing!

We made the yummiest meals ever. And Red E was her Momma's big helper.


Of course HY came to help "clean up"---

Mini-E favorite spot was in the retro high chair eating her usual 4 bowls of Cereal!
Yes, FOUR bowls!

gotta find me one of those cool chairs...

Hair courtesy of Lise

On Saturday, we were joined by another favorite family.

more pictures here.

We wanted the BYU game, ate hogies & just hung out. It was a fabulous reunion.


HY and Red E played all day and night with minimal problems. I'm not surprised, this little lady is such a sweetheart.

But Mini-E & Big Boy J were another story. A bit of competition there! But I'm convinced they love each other deep down inside.

more here.

A big huge Thank you to our Friends who invited us into their home and let us be apart of their everyday lives. It was such a treat! We love you!!!

Since being home, I've cleaned & cleaned & cleaned* & still my house isn't the way I'd like it to be. I've been busy with photos session, planning Thanksgiving, designing custom Christmas Cards, & trying to get everything in order for a Christmas Mini-Session. (watch for that soon)

*laundry, unpack, bathrooms, de-clutter, dinner, dinner, sweep, mop, kitchen...the list goes on

So, there you have it.
We have Christmas lights up, but not turned on (there are 3 people on our street with lights on--crazy)

And last night I was treated with the a girl's night out to the Cheesecake Factory and TWILIGHT! A true treat!

Guess who's going to Italy???

I'm so excited!
Farmboy & I have been saving our skymiles for many years (he's been saving them since his mission)---so that we could go to Italy for our 5th year anniversary. Well, the time has come. We booked our flight for next April. Sure that's about 10 months away, but it's a dream come true!

Dream.
Come.
True!

Memory Lane Monday

About 7 or 8 years ago, Nonna & I took 3 trips in 1. I had just returned from my mission & of course wanted to go back. She wanted to do some geneology in France. And my mom's sister, Aunt X (for Excentric) needed to go back to Dubai to fix a statue in a hotel. So, we decided to do all three in 2 months time. Here are few of my favorite moments in Dubai (one of the 7 Arab Emirates) & Oman (a place where my aunt used to live).

Yep, that red face is me. And if you doubt it...check out those ankles. It was so so so VERY hot in the Middle East. I thought I'd melt every day. And that means something coming from an Arizona girl.

This picture was taken in Oman.

Don't really remember what it was we were up to.

Patti (a friend of my aunt's) came along for the tour.

Here's the hotel & one of the many statues that my Aunt X was commissioned to do for them.

If you are thinking that that's my mother...you'd be off by about 19months.

This picture was taken in the souther tip of Oman (very close to Yemen).

These were some cliffs on the edge of the ocean.

Natural Geisers.

An older gentleman offered my mother a fair share of livestock if I would be his 3rd wife.

These are just a few of the hundreds of pictures that I took while on this trip. I've seen the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, Venice, & Paris...but I've never seen a land quite like this. Incredible! Unforgettable! Memorable!

If you can Dream it Friday

As I was blog hopping last night, I noticed that everyone seems to have such fabulous lives. All sorts of people are traveling around the world. I love to travel...or at least I used to. And then---came my 2 crazy yahoos. Traveling with them isn't exactly what I would call--"fun". So, I started thinking about all the crazy places I've been. Here's a walk down memory lane in a little place called ChungHua, Taiwan!

About 7 years ago, I taught English in Taiwan to little itty bitty Taiwanese kids. Loot at that sea of black hair! If you ever want to know what it feels like to be in the minority---go to an Asian country. Sometime the only white person that we saw was ourselves in a mirror. You know you've been there too long when YOU even stop to look at a rare white person. If it looks crazy, that's because it was. We worked nearly every day for VERY long, tiring hours. (Total preparation for being a mom). You can tell by the dark circles under our eyes. But those kids were worth every minute. Hilarious! Oh good times, good---times.

Here are a few of my roomies on two very RARE but separate vacations in Kenting. (I definitely need a new bathing suit). Rach is a familiar face! Wish I knew where everyone was now. Which brings me to my "dream it Friday"....

Some of these little bitty people were 3 years old when I knew them. Like I said, THAT was 6 years ago. Can you imagine how old these little people are NOW? I can only dream what their lives are like now...ShellyShan, Hansel, Euen, Tiffany, Jake, Jack, JoAnna...I've forgotten so many names. Help me out Rach!

So I say "thank you" to all you itty bitty Taiwanese kids because while living my dream so many years ago, each of you prepared me for living my DAY to DAY dream NOW.

These 2 are my dream come true!

Seen better days

This backpack has been everywhere--Literally. It's been to and from school at MTV & BYU. It's seen the deserts of Oman& Dubai. It's been to the Alps and seen the magestic mountain tops of France & Italy. It's held the most important books in the world. It's seen the Great Wall & South America (thanks to Nonna). It's been in a tsunami & a few earthquakes. It's held the best pasteries & family geneolgy from France. It's sat on some of the oldest steps in Europe. It's been thru rainstorms in Taiwan and snow storms in Utah. So many places, I can't even remember! (Even places I've never been--like Madagascar).

I love this backpack---it's more than just a few zippers and hooks. It's an experience--a lifetime of amazing sites--incredible friendships---a lasting filmstrip of memories. The main zipper is broken & therefore, it's been in the trunk of my car for months now...waiting to be exchanged for a newer model. I don't think I can bring myself to exchange this "friend." I hate to let her go...but maybe it's time.